


Happily Unhappy

by Alby Cnyu (albydamned)



Category: Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Dramedy, Family
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-28
Updated: 2018-09-03
Packaged: 2018-09-26 22:21:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 16,410
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9924488
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/albydamned/pseuds/Alby%20Cnyu
Summary: On an island where anything can happen, reality hits close to home for a young man when he learns that his brother fathered a four year old boy who recently lost his parents in a tragic accident.





	1. The Phone Call

To say that Ven's life was great would be an understatement. He had everything a person could ever want: good looks, supportive parents, a well paying job, a car and a mortgage free house. Yeah, life for him was beyond great--it was perfect. Unless you want to count a particular itch that he can't get rid of. It's the kind of itch that no matter what he does, he can't get rid of it. Even if he clawed his skin off, it'd still be there. This itch was his brother, Vanitas.

It was hard to believe that they were brothers, let alone twins.

See, Vanitas didn't look one hundred percent apart of the family; where he did share some features as Ven, everything else about him was different. Ven was born with blonde hair, Vanitas' hair was black. Ven had their mother's blue eyes and while Vanitas' eyes were the same shape as Ven's, his eye color was yellow. No one knows why he came out the way he did but there have been rumors. One rumor in particular was that the day he popped out of their mother's womb, dark and stormy clouds hovered above the hospital for weeks until they were deemed well enough to be taken home.

Nothing good ever seemed to happen when he was around; he was a troublemaker. He hardly smiled and whenever he did, it's because he did something or was going to do something wrong. And when he got Ven in trouble with him, which happened quite a few times growing up. Despite this, Ven loved Vanitas. No really, he did. He didn't think Vanitas was that much of a bad guy either; sure, he can be a bit of a bad seed, but he had some redeemable qualities about him. And even if he didn't, Vanitas was his brother and he loved him regardless... right?

_**Wrong.** _

Vanitas made him sick! He couldn't stand him! He's never met such an amoral asshole in his entire life! It was a living, breathing nightmare being under the same roof as him! He's an irresponsible, cruel human-being. He's the bane to Ven's existence, a nemesis that torments him day and night, and a scoundrel! He always told him that one day his behavior would really come back to bite him in the ass.

But he never thought it would happen so soon.

***

It was a rainy Wednesday afternoon and Ven had just gotten home from work, ready to embrace his well-deserved week off. Never again will he work twelve days back to back. His head ached, his eyes were strained, and he could still hear the phones ringing. All he wanted was some peace and quiet, to just sit on the couch and shed away his exhaustion-- but any hopes of that were quickly dashed. Upon approaching the couch, he saw Vanitas lying there with his back facing the TV. He let out a groan. "Just what I needed..." he murmured as he dropped his things on the floor and tossed his jacket over the armrest.

"Hey." He gave the leg of the couch several kicks. "Are you up?"  
"No." was Vanitas' response.  
"Have you been like this all day?"  
"Maybe." Ven huffed and moved to the other side of the couch where Vanitas' feet were and shook them. "Move. I wanna sit here." Vanitas turned on his back and made room for Ven to sit down, then dropped his legs over Ven's when he settled in. "You're such an ass." Ven said, but didn't bother putting up a fight. If he wanted to, he could have easily flipped Vanitas off the furniture and claim it for himself but it just wasn't worth it. "Say, did you call up your job and apologize to your boss?" 

"Nope and never in a million years."  
"Why not?"  
"The old man wants me to kiss that guy's ass and I refuse."  
"The 'old man' is our dad and he got you off. All you have to do is call and say, 'I'm sorry.' It's not that hard."  
"Then you do it for me."  
"I already agreed to work all of your shifts in exchange for an apology."  
"That was _your_ choice not mine. I gave that guy my resignation weeks ago."

"By hot-wiring his car and ramming it into the building! You could've killed someone."  
"That was the plan."  
"I meant a co-worker! You could've killed a co-worker."  
"Casualty of war."  
"You got off scot-free--"  
"Cuz the old man paid for everything."  
"--and all you have to do is apologize."  
"Which I ain't gonna do. Anything else?"

Ven threw his head back and groaned again. "I can't stand you."  
"You can always move."  
"Shut up." Ven said, pushing Vanitas' legs which didn't budge. _I'm supposed to be saying that to you, not the other way around._ But when Ven thought about it, there was no reason for any of them to move other than forming independence from one another. It's mortgage free. Who would want to leave a mortgage free house? Especially when it was a gift from one of your parents? But it wasn't that fact that had Ven buttoning his lips-- it was because of what the house represented. It was like an heirloom, no, it was an heirloom. It's been apart of their mother's family for generations and she cherished it deeply. She did everything in that house, even conceived them in one of the master bedrooms (which happened to be the one Vanitas resided in), so it was only fair to let the both of them have it when they got older.  

It didn't make the situation any less of a pain in the ass though.

"I don't get why you bother working there." Vanitas said, breaking the small silence between them. "It's not like you don't have something better beyond that place."  
"I'm just being a responsible and productive member of society-- something _you_ know nothing about."  
"Is that what you think? Just cuz I don't work a nine-to-five anymore doesn't mean I'm not productive. You earn the same amount as I do and it's not from sitting behind a desk taking phone calls. Admit it, you're an ass-kisser." 

"I am not an ass-kisser."  
"Yeah you are. Ever since you could breathe, you’ve lived your life pleasing others." Before Ven could offer a rebuttal, the kitchen phone rang and he looked at it. He eyed Vanitas who gave him a similar look. "It's for you." he said.  
"How do you know?"  
"I don't. It's been ringing like that for a while. Some lady left a voice mail earlier today saying it was urgent."  
"Did you bother calling back? Could be a request from your former boss." Vanitas shrugged at this and turned on his side. "I'm not answering it."

"I just got home from covering your shift, Vanitas. The least you can do is answer the phone in your own home."  
"No." Ven shoved Vanitas' legs off of him and trudged his way over to the kitchen phone, muttering some choice words along the way. It was days like these where he wish he disconnected the house phone. It hasn't been used in years and yet the day he just wants to relax, it's ringing off the hook. "Hello?" he said, trying his best to hide his annoyance. "Hikari residence? Hikari is my mother's maiden name. She doesn't live here anymore. Vanitas?" He looked over to Vanitas and the young man immediately covered his head with the couch pillow. "He's not here at the moment. Can I take a message? Urgent? How so? .... really? When?" Ven leaned into the phone and whispered, "There's no other possibility?" 

Ven grew silent upon receiving the answer. His grip tightened around the phone and after giving Vanitas another glance, he spoke. "When's the deadline? ... okay. Yes, I'll let him know. No, it wasn't a problem at all. Thank you. Can I have this number again? Thanks. Goodbye." Ven hung up the phone and sighed once more. He leaned on the counter and shut his eyes for a moment as if to process something from long ago. When he collected himself, he returned to the living room where Vanitas was lying on his back again. "Well you look like the world crashed down on you." he said. "What happened? Y'get fired?" Ven didn't respond; instead, he crossed his arms and slowly sat on the armrest by Vanitas' feet. 

"I need to know something."  
"What?"  
"Do you remember the day your allowance was cut short?"  
"Cut short?" Vanitas snorted. "Dude, I didn't even get it. I was severely short that week."  
"Was there something in particular that you wanted?"  
"Yeah, a brand new guitar. There were only fifty in existence with the design I wanted, I had to get it."

"How much was it?"  
"A lot."  
"And what'd you do to earn the rest of the money?"  
"I donated," Vanitas said, as if to humor him.  
"Exactly what kind of donation was it?"  
"The one that paid very well." Ven placed his face in his hands at the sound of this and Vanitas could hear him murmur something among the lines of, "Oh jeez." and "I can't believe this is happening." He reached for the empty soda can on the table and chucked it at Ven's head, bringing him back from his world of internal conflict. He sat up as Ven snatched his head to his direction.

"Instead of murmuring to yourself, say it to me. I know it's got somethin' to do with that phone call. What'd they tell you?" Ven let out another heavy sigh before responding.  
"The call was meant for you." he said, "It was from a social worker, she wanted to inform you that a couple was killed in an accident last month."  
"Tragic." Vanitas replied, his tone being one of indifference. "What's that got to do with me?"  
"They left behind a child," Ven continued. "He just turned four not too long ago."  
".... And?"  
"Vanitas, he's yours."

 "Correction, my dear brother, he _was_ mine." Vanitas retorted with a chuckle as he leaned back on the couch. "When I donated to his parents, I relinquished all rights to having anything to do with him."  
"You can't be serious!" Ven shot up from his seat.  
"Why shouldn't I be?"  
"Because he's yours and you're gonna give him up?"  
"He was never mine to begin with. Just because he came from me doesn't mean he's mine."

"This isn't a joking matter."  
"Does it look like I'm laughing?" Vanitas sat up again. "Why should I care about some brat who's lost his parents?"  
"Do I have to repeat myself? He's been determined to be your biological son and you're talking about giving him up!"  
"Oh my god," Vanitas said, as he walked behind the couch and dug his nails into the furniture. "Do people in this world NOT know what _donation_ means? It means to give without expecting anything back. I gave them a kid, I don't expect to get 'im back because of some unforeseen tragedy. I didn't want 'im then, I don't want 'im now."

"Vanitas, this little boy has no one but you now. If you give him up, you're no better than the deadbeats that have kids for the sport of it!"  
"I never wanted a kid!"  
"Well you have one now!" Ven slammed his hand on the armrest. "I can't believe you're arguing this shit with me. There’s a child on the verge of becoming an orphan at this very moment and you’re having a fit because of what _you_ did! You do realize what you’ve done, haven’t you?"

"Yeah, a good deed! I did it to help others have kids, not me. I relinquished all rights to the people who wanted him and now because they’re dead and nobody else in that family wants him, you want me to drop everything I’m doing to start taking care of him? Absolutely not!"  
"He'll go to the State."  
"The State can have him! Why do I gotta fuck up my life because his parents went off and died in an accident?"  
"Getting hit full blast by a drunken eighteen wheeler is NOT a choice, you fucking asshole! For once in your miserable life, can you open that damned blackened heart of yours and see that it’s not about you anymore?!"

Silence.

Vanitas slumped over the couch, let out an aggravated groan, and remained frozen in that spot for some time. "I'm not dealing with this shit right now." he uttered under his breath as he stood upright and walked passed Ven over to one of their closets. It's been a couple of weeks since he's been out of the house and unless he had a reason to leave, the keys would be on the table. This was a reason for him to leave, but the keys were in one of his jacket pockets and it didn't help he couldn't recall which jacket it was. "What do you mean by that?" Ven said, watching Vanitas rummage through the closet.  
"Figure it out. Here they are." Vanitas pulled the keys from the closet and headed to the door.

"Where're you going?"  
"I'm leaving."  
"This isn't something you can run away from, Vanitas. Vanitas!"

_SLAM!_

Ven threw his arms up in the air then threw himself on the couch, burying his head into the pillow. The exhaustion he felt earlier was now replaced with frustration. His words probably got through to his brother, but he wasn't sure. This is something that would take Vanitas weeks to process and they didn't have weeks; the child would be going to the States in a matter of days and the social worker needed an answer by tomorrow afternoon. Ven pulled his phone from his pocket and the number he wrote down earlier. He looked at both items for what seemed to be hours. This call would be life changing and there would be absolutely no going back from it if he dialed the number.

"He's gonna kill me for this..."


	2. A Not So Warm Welcome

Vanitas hadn't seen Ven since he left the house last week. Considering his mood was still lousy, it was best that they didn't see each other. It annoyed him to no end that Ven spoke to him like a child; they were only a few hours apart, but Ven treated it as though it was years. Always spewing on about responsibilities as if he didn't contribute in paying the bills or housework. It's not like he had to earn his keeps either; this was just as much his house as it was Ven's. If he wanted to bust a hole in the wall with a sledgehammer he had every right to do so. Now he was tempted to do just that to prove a point, but he didn't feel like it.

He didn't feel like doing anything today to be honest. Then again, he was hungry and hadn't eaten anything since last night. But it required him to get out of bed and cook, which he didn't want to do. "Guess I'll starve." he said as he prepared to take a nap. His stomach let out a growl loud enough to convince him to go down to the kitchen. He checked the fridge, the cabinets, and even the deep freezer and found they were low on food. "I knew I forgot to do something." He took out his phone and it started to ring. The caller ID said, 'Ass-kisser'.

"S'up ass-kisser." he said.  
_"I am not an ass-kisser!"_ Ven snarled on the other end.  
"I was just about to call you. We don't have food in the house."  
_"You were supposed to order the groceries yesterday."_  
"Yeah, but I forgot, so now there's no food."  
_"You forgot? How could you forget? You didn't even-- ah, forget it. I didn't call you for that."_  
"Did ya call to bitch at me?"  
_"No. I should, but I'm not."_

"Then what do you want?"  
_"To make peace. We haven't talked in a week."_  
"That because you've been avoiding me."  
_"Not on purpose!"_  
"Yes on purpose. Not that I cared; the house was rather peaceful without you badgering me."

 _"Talking about responsibility isn't badgering."_  
"To me it is. What peace offering you got for me? If it ain't good I'm hanging up on you."  
_"We can grab a bite to eat. My treat. I get off soon so... two o'clock?"_  
"Fair enough."

There was a knock on the door, a rather weak knock, Vanitas would've missed it. "I think that was the door..." he murmured. "Should I answer it?"  
_"Might as well, you're downstairs."_ Vanitas nodded and walked over to the door. "If it's a bill collector, I'm throwing him down the stairs."  
_"You can't do that, Vanitas."_  
"I'll do whatever the hell I want on my property." He opened the door and saw a little boy with a large suitcase. "Sorry little boy, I don't buy scout cookies." he said shutting the door.  
_"Who was that?"_  
"One of those fundraiser kids. Quickest way to get rid of 'em is to say you're not interested. Unless they have persistent parents, then I'll have an argument." Another knock, followed by the doorbell ringing. Vanitas huffed. "Guess I'm about to argue with someone's parents. I'll see you when you get home." Vanitas hung up and answered the door. Once again, it was the little boy, only this time he was with a woman. Now he took the time to get a real look at the boy; he had brown hair and blue eyes, blue enough to resemble the sea and he was wearing a big red jacket. The woman beside him had long blonde hair that was tied, blue eyes, and looked nothing like the boy. Probably got his looks from his dad or something.

"You his mother?" he asked.  
"Are you Vanitas?" she said.  
"Who wants to know?"  
"Quistis Trepe, social worker. We spoke on the phone last week."  
Vanitas arched a brow. "I didn't speak to a Quistis Trepe last week."  
"You did say you were Vanitas, correct?"  
"Yeah, I did."

"This is your address, right?"  
"Yeah, it is."

"I spoke to a Vanitas on the phone who lives at this address."  
"No, you didn't."  
"I can assure you we did and we agreed on making arrangements for this week." After another long pause, Vanitas spoke. "Yeah... I kinda forgot. I've been busy so it slipped my mind."  
"I understand. I'd love to stick around and chat--you know repeat the conversation we already had--but I'm running a bit behind schedule and need to get back to work." She knelt down and pointed to Vanitas. "You see this man?" she said, "You'll be in his care, okay? Don't worry, I'll visit you to see how you're doing. If you have any problems, you call me." 

The little boy shook his head at this and Quistis gave him a quick rub on the head before taking her leave. "You'll warm up to him, Vanitas, I promise." she said as she walked down the path. She got in her car, waved at the little boy once more, and drove off. Vanitas watched the car vanish and stood in complete silence as the little boy walked passed him, pulling his large suitcase behind him. Dark clouds formed around the house and a rumble could be heard from them all the while Vanitas' grip on his phone tightened.

" _ **Ventus!**_ "

 

Ven pulled up to the house and parked in the garage. He was supposed to be home an hour ago, now it was pouring and he didn't prepare for this sudden change in weather. "The weatherman said it'd be a good day today!" he said, running to the front door and unlocking it. "Vanitas, I'm home."

No answer.

He glanced into the living room as he took off his jacket and shook off the rain in an attempt to dry himself off. Still no sign of Vanitas. _Must've fallen asleep or somethin'._ he thought, taking off his shoes. It was only when he went to pick them up did he notice the little red jacket lying neatly a few feet away. "Where'd this come from?" he said, picking the item up and examining it. It was definitely living up to its title of being small. No way he or Vanitas could fit it, so where did it come from? The attic? That's possible since there were many items in the attic that were from their childhood, but he's never seen this particular jacket before unless--

The air left him upon hitting the ground. There were stars, lots of stars that blurred his vision, pain that definitely wasn't there earlier, and this heavy weight resting on top of him. _I think I just got ran over._ he thought, gasping for air. "Ow..." he managed to groan out as he was forced to his feet.

"You little snake!" Vanitas' voice boomed through his soul. "You just had to be the saint, didn't you? Didn't you?!" He shook him into recovery.  
"W-what did I do?" Ven stammered.  
"You ruined me that's what you did!"  
"How?"  
"You called that social worker and impersonated me. Now I'm guardian to that brat!"  
"Wait... he came today?!"

"So you did do it?!" Vanitas threw Ven to the ground. "Your goody-two-shoes ass pisses me off to no end!"  
"I only did what was right," Ven said, catching his breath.  
"So you go on and impersonate me?! Ruin my life because you wanted to prevent some kid you don’t even know from being an orphan?"  
"Yes! If what the information given to me is true, he’s your son, _my_ nephew, and I’d be damned if I let my nephew go to the State! Speaking of which, where is he?"

Vanitas crossed his arms and gestured his head to the living room. "On the couch," he said, "I don’t like the little bastard already. He took off his jacket and walked by me without breathing a word."  
"He's not a bastard, he's yours." Ven dusted himself off and peeked into the living room. That explains why he didn't see it the first time; Vanitas had pushed the couch to the wall so the foyer arch could obscure it. There was the little boy, laying on the couch with headphones and a tablet, oblivious to what was happening in the foyer. He was also facing in the direction of the dining room and kitchen, further distancing him from the nearby chaos. 

"I'm gonna talk to him, okay?"  
"I don't care," Vanitas scoffed, leaning on the arch of foyer. Ven rolled his eyes and walked over to the couch. As he did this, the little boy sat up, took off the headphones, and turned his head towards Ven's direction and the young man froze. He couldn't describe his feelings; some great being had copy and pasted a recolored version of his brother from when he was four years old and placed him on their couch. Wow... just wow. But the question is: are their behaviors the same? He cleared his throat and approached the boy. The little boy observed Ven quietly, his eyes absorbing the young man's appearance and sizing him up. 

Ven chuckled quietly at this. "Hey there," he said. "I'm Ventus, but you can call me Ven. What's your name?"  
"Sora."  
"Sora? That's a cool name." He pointed to Vanitas. "See that man over there?" Sora looked at Vanitas and shook his head.  
"He closed the door on me." Ven scratched the back of his head and chuckled nervously. "Yeah... yeah, he did that. Uh, that's my brother, Vanitas. He and I will be taking care of you, all right?" The little boy shook his head yes again. "Great. By any chance, did you eat anything before I got here?"

"No."  
"If you could eat whatever you want right now, what would it be?"  
"... cheesefries." Sora said after a moment of thought.  
"Okay, give me a minute and we'll head out to get you that." Sora nodded once more and placed the headphones back on and continued watching cartoons from the tablet. Ven smiled and walked back into the foyer. "Vanitas, that's your son." he said. 

"How you figure?"  
"He looks just like you. Forget everything from last week, if I was oblivious to all of this and saw him down the street, I'd say he's yours. Can't you see the resemblance?"  
"Nope."  
"No?! Whaddya mean-- you know what-- don’t answer that. You’re still mad at me. Look, we’re heading out in a few minutes. If you're coming, I'll still hold up my end of the deal, okay?"

"... .... ....."  
"Well?"  
"I hope you choke on your food." Vanitas slammed his shoulder into Ven's as he walked passed him and gathered his things.  
"Love you too, Vanitas." Ven murmured, rubbing his fresh bruise.

The trio left the house and went to one of the small diners nearby. It was a cozy environment where a number of residents would go to pass the time. After ordering their food, they seated themselves by the window and the brothers spent a bit of their time eating in silence. Ven couldn't even enjoy his meal; the beams coming from Vanitas' eyes were trying to burn a hole through him. Luckily for him, lighting people on fire was not in the young man's power. Vanitas placed headphones over Sora's head. "Don't take these off." he told him, handing the boy the tablet he made sure to bring with him. Sora clicked on a cartoon he was watching earlier and resumed his mini-marathon.

"Don't make that a habit, Vanitas." Ven said. Vanitas scowled at him briefly as he snapped his fingers near one of Sora's ears. No response. He was completely absorbed with what he was doing. Now his attention was on Ven. "What's the story behind this kid?"   
"What do you mean?"  
"Whaddya mean what do I mean? _You're_ the one that called and had the conversation with the social worker."  
"Oh yeah. I was told that his relatives wanted to abide by his late mother's wishes and have him placed into the care of his biological father: you. But she said that you were much older and you two had a cordial relationship until you left for work."

"I don't even know his mother."  
"I know. I don't know why she would lie either. Perhaps to save face of some sort? Anyway, Sora's information was transferred over to Quistis and she became his social worker. And now he's here."  
"How?"  
"We already had this--"  
"Not that, stupid. We live on an island that's equivalent to the damn Bermuda Triangle. You gotta really _look_ for our location."

Ven paused and thought about it.  
"Cid did it, didn't he?" Vanitas beat him to the answer.  
"That's the only answer I can think of."  
"Great. He's gonna tell everybody."  
"He may only tell Vincent."

"That's everybody."  
"How? Vincent doesn't even like talking to people that much."  
"I didn't stutter. He helps run a shop with Yuffie, a gossiping ninja."  
"Oh... yeah... let's not think about that right now. Did Sora come with anything else besides the clothes and jacket I saw?"  
"A big suitcase with a bunch of nothingness: sealed envelopes, a little box, barely any clothes to last the week, and a stuffed toy."

"That's it?"  
"Yeah. They should've put some cash in there for me. Compensate me for my upcoming misery. Farewell to my freedom." Vanitas downed the rest of his soda as Ven rolled his eyes, hopefully erasing the comment he just heard. "You're making a fuss about nothing," he said.  
" _I'm_ fussing about nothing?! Did you open the door today to the world saying, 'Hey, Vanitas, child here, life over.'? You don't have to come to terms with this shit, I do!"

"I don't have to because I already did. That's why I called. You're just pissed at me because of my actions. I'd be pissed too, but what's done is done and it can't be changed now." Vanitas grew silent and went back to finishing his food. He got up to refill his cup and Sora's, not before giving Ven another scowl. Contrary to what Vanitas might have been thinking, Ven understood his feelings; he just didn't care about them. To him, it wasn't about Vanitas anymore, it was about making Sora feel at home in this new place. A new place that's much more than it appeared to be. Sora's laughs caught his attention and a smile returned to his face. Vanitas had nothing to worry about. He'll be getting help along the way in order to adjust and Quistis did say she would gladly make routine visits to ensure everything would be as smooth as possible.

Yeah, Vanitas could totally handle this.


	3. Broken Strings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A long(ish) chapter to make up for the long wait.  
> Sorry about that.

He could **_not_** handle this.  

Just yesterday morning, his life was going his way and he had it completely together. But now? Now, it was falling apart right in front of him. What took him years to build, took Sora mere seconds to rip apart. He didn't expect the little boy to adapt so quickly to the household: all it took was a shopping trip, more food, and sleep, and the kid was exploring every part of the house, crawling through every space and getting tangled in quite a few cords. Ven couldn't contain his laughter from hearing the things he thought Vanitas would never say: "Put that back!", "Don't touch that!", "It's not yours.", "Where'd you get that?!" "How'd you get it?", "Get off of there! You tryna kill yourself?! On second thought, jump. I dare ya." 

He was happy to see his nephew well adjusted to his new home, but he was still perplexed by the things Sora had in his possession-- moreso the lack of it. The bag was large enough to fit Sora's body in yet it was extremely light; true to what Vanitas said, there was little to no clothing inside of the bag. Poor kid didn't even have a toothbrush. It made him wonder what kind of living environment he had prior to this one. Perhaps one of the envelopes would provide the answer to some of those questions, but he wouldn't know of its contents until he got home and that proved to be a great distraction for him. Luckily for him, he could leave earlier than his co-workers and he might take up that offer. As he mentally prepared his small escape, he saw fingers grasp the top of his cubicle and up sprang Yuffie. "Hi, Ven!" she said.  

"Yuffie? What're you doing here?"   
"Delivery! What're you doing here?"   
"Working."   
"But you don't really need this job. You're--"    
"Shh." he placed a finger over his mouth. "They don't know that. Neither do my parents."   
"Are you ever going to tell them?" Ven shrugged at this. Maybe one day he'll mention his actual profession but he didn't think this would be the appropriate time, especially given the new-found circumstance he found himself in. Yuffie then lowered her volume. "Are you gonna tell them about the little one?"  

"I'm clocking out." Ven shut down his small station for the day and proceeded to leave with Yuffie following behind him. It was now dawning on him how far he _didn't_ think ahead; Sora wasn't some stray animal that only required food, water, and pure entertainment-- he was a child who needed much more than that. He needed proper schooling, proper healthcare, everything that a child needed in order to make it through life and he didn't even think of that! Why was he burdening himself with this? Oh yeah, because he knows Vanitas can't do it on his own! He's still adjusting himself. It's only been a day, so he can't expect a complete change. One can dream, right? Until they got all of that situated, his parents'll have to wait.

"I know," Yuffie's voice broke his train wreck of thoughts. "Vanitas? A dad?! Never in my wildest dreams would I've thought he'd put that on his To Do list." She noticed the young man giving her a concerned look then laughed. "Don't worry," she said, "I got you covered. I didn't tell a soul!" Well that was a relief. "I told three!"   
"Yuffie!"   
"I'm kidding! I'm kidding!" Yuffie laughed, patting Ven on the back. "I know I'm one to tell everyone but this secret is purely between Cid, Vincent, and me. My lips are so sealed, a chainsaw won't be able to break through it."    
"That's good to know." Ven said.

Once they reached their respective vehicles, Yuffie waved a farewell and took off, while he remained parked still collecting his thought. But it was interrupted by an all too familiar ringtone and he let out a small groan before answering. "What's up?"    
_"My patience."_    
"You don't say." He could feel Vanitas flipping off his phone. The silence made it more evident that he wanted Ven to get the message. "How's Sora holding up?"    
_"Ask him yourself."_ Ven listened to Vanitas walk to an unknown location of the house. _"Say hi."_    
_"Hi!"_ Sora's voice beamed excitement.    
"Hey, Sora. How're you doing?"    
_"We're playing Hangman!"_ Ven chuckled for a moment then grew silent when it fully registered what the liitle boy had said; he knew this game far too well, but he also knew Vanitas' version of said game. Surely he wouldn't... would he? "And how exactly do you play this game?" he asked, dreading the answer. 

 _"I'm a hostage. If I stay still and don't make noises, I win ice cream!"_    
"For how long?"   
_"'til you come home."_    
"Where are you?"   
_"The ceiling!"_    
"The ceiling?!"  

 The tires screeched to a halt as he rushed out of the car to his house. He could see Sora through one of the windows taped to the ceiling of the dining room. Swinging the door opened, he yelled his brother's name only to find the mischievous black-haired in the dining room with the little boy sitting on the table, duct tape free and ice cream in hand. "Ice cream!" Sora exclaimed, showing Ven his reward. Vanitas snickered at the confusion on Ven's face. He was still trying to process how he managed to do everything in such a short amount of time. While he was doing that, Vanitas tapped Sora's arm. "Go play."

"Okay!" Ven watched the little boy carefully made his way down the table and made his way up the stairs to his new room. Upon hearing the click of the door, Ven snatched his head to Vanitas, who pulled him into the kitchen. "We need to talk." he said.

~Earlier~

This was the fifth time Sora had to be pried off of anything that wasn't screwed to the floor. He was shrieking with laughter and when placed on the floor, he bolted elsewhere. It was only when he reached the basement door, did Vanitas lift him and refuse to put him down. "I said no!" he said. "Why're you so energetic?" He examined the back of Sora's neck, strands of his hair, and his bare legs. _Where's th'fucking off button?_ Sora wiggled some more. "I wanna play in the basement!" he sang.  
"You're not going in the basement."  
"Why?"  
"You don't get to ask that question."  
"How come?"  
"You don't get to ask that either." Sora stopped wiggling for a moment then bounced.  
"Why how come not?"

Vanitas turned him around. "Seriously?"  
"You don't get to ask that question." Sora proudly crossed his arms.  
"What?"  
"What what?" Vanitas placed the little boy on the floor and walked into the living room. "I'm not doing this with you. You can't go in the basement. Period."  
"What's in there anyway?"

"None of your business." Sora pouted. "Don't care. Pout. Hold your breath til ya turn blue while you're at it." Sora kept his pout face and left Vanitas to sulk about his predicament on the couch. Finally, some peace and quiet. He lived for the sight of the little boy running upstairs without saying a word to him; he was not in the mood for another long winded, randomly worded, annoying conversation. He liked it better when the kid barely spoke yesterday. He just wanted to take this time to himself to relax... but then he remembered something and checked his phone. "Shit."

"Oooh, you said a bad word!" Sora called from the balcony. Vanitas didn't even need to look to know that Sora was standing on the railing again. He wasn't even gonna stop him; the couch'll break his fall. He listened to Sora's movements as he sent out a few text messages and heard a small thud beside him. It was the plush doll from Sora's suitcase; it had brown spiked hair, stitched lips, a buttoned eye, and wore tattered overalls with marks all over it. Considering Sora was given new toys the other day, it was probably time for this one to be thrown out.

"Geronimo!"

Down came Sora and he landed perfectly on the soft cushion. "Hey, you didn't stop me this time." he said, when he recovered from his minor titter. Vanitas shrugged at this as he continued to text. "Should I have?"  
"You did it before." Vanitas didn't respond. He straight up ignored him, earning him another pout. Sora grew quiet and watched the young man continue his non-verbal conversation. Not wanting to sit there and do nothing, he crawled over to Vanitas, grabbing his toy along the way. "Whacha doin'?" he said, trying to peek at the phone. He ended up getting his face shoved back. "Ow!"

"Don't touch my things."  
"I didn't."  
"You tried."  
"You're mean. Mommy says it's not nice to be mean to people."  
"Well, your mom's not here."

"She will be when she comes back from vacation and I'm gonna tell." Vanitas' brain did a record scratch as he slowly turned his head to the little boy. "Vacation?" Sora shook his head yes. "Exactly where do you think you are, kid?"  
"Everyone said I'd be going to stay with aother relative while Mommy and Daddy were away." he leaned in and whispered, "No kids allowed."  
"Uh-huh..."

"We're moving too. So when they come back, they'll get our things and come here! Maybe we'll be neighbors too since we're related!" Sora's words began to fade as Vanitas scratched the armrest and tapped his foot. I knew this shit would happen. I knew this shit would happen. This is fucking bullshit. Bullshit! I'll wring that bastard's neck! He's such an impulsive ass-kissing bastard! I can't stand-- Sora tapping on his leg broke his concentration and, more than likely, saved Ven from an unfortunate fate. "We're related, right?" the little boy asked.

"Yeah."  
"How so?"  
"Ven's your uncle."  
"Are you my uncle too?"  
".... .... .... no."  
"Are you related to Mommy or Daddy?"  
"Neither..."

"Then who're you to me?" Vanitas rose to his feet and motioned for Sora to follow to the kitchen. "Are you related to Granma? She's my mom's mom. Or my other granma? She's my dad's mom. What about my granpas? Maybe only one since the other isn't related to us. Daddy said so. Did Auntie tell you I was coming here? I don't think she did; she doesn't tell people things on time. Maybe Granma told you. Did she tell you when Mommy and Daddy were coming back too?" Sora's lips shut upon seeing Vanitas dangle an ice cream cone in front of him. "Is that for me?" he asked, bouncing with excitement.

"Do you want it to be?"  
"Yes!"  
"Let's play a game. If you win, it's yours." Vanitas placed the ice cream back into the freezer and rummaged through one of the drawers. "Here's how it works: you're playing a hostage and waiting to be rescued. Your job is to remain quiet until you're rescued."  
"Who's rescuing me?"  
"Ven. He'll be home soon."  
"What's this game called?"  
"Hangman." Vanitas said, ripping the duct tape.

~Present~

"So you taped him to the ceiling?!"

"He wasn't even up there that long." Vanitas jabbed the knuckle of his index finger below Ven's collar bone. "That's not the point I was making, moron. The kid's family lied and said his parents went on vacation." He then quickly muttered, "I knew this kind of shit would happen."  
"Why would they do that?" Ven said. "Yeah, he's a baby, but I don't think he's stupid."  
"Probably the same reason why he came here with practically nothing."  
"We're thinking too much into that. We don't know anything about their situation."

"I don't give a shit 'bout their situation. They should've told him."  
"I know."  
"I would do it if I wasn't busy."  
"I'd rather you not. Wait... busy? You're not even doing anything today."  
"You're right, I'm not." Vanitas slammed his phone into Ven's chest. " _We_ are." Ven looked at the phone and in large caps that said, 'REHEARSAL'. His jaw dropped and he went to check his own phone for confirmation. "Shit."

 _That's what I said._ Vanitas snickered.

"Can't we reschedule?"  
"Not this one."  
"Why didn't you tell me?"  
"How was I supposed to know Mr. I Know All About Responsibility forgot rehearsal was in a couple of hours? And since nobody around us knows of his existence, Sora the Explorer's coming with us. While you were at work, I sorta let the group know he'd be there."  
"Great... they'll have nothing but questions."  
"I set them straight." Vanitas said, earning him a very concerned look. "What? It's not like I threatened to kill 'em." He added below his breath, "Although I'm sure the process might."

One of the upstairs door creaked opened and tiny footsteps rushed to the stairs. They returned to the living room to see Sora coming down each step slowly. "I forgot Ceviche." he said, as he reached the last step and pointed to the table in the dining room where his buddy lay.  
"That's a stupid name." Vanitas said to himself. It was loud enough for Ven to hear and he received an elbow to the side. "You can grab our things." The dark-haired complied not before giving him a pluck to the ear. "You're carrying them in. Break my guitar and you die. Got it?" Ven clicked his teeth and shook his head then turned back to Sora. "We were just talking about you." he said. "We're heading out soon. Wanna grab Ceviche and a few things for the ride?"

"Where're we going?"  
"A place we'd like to call The Studio."

The Studio was an abandoned theatre Vanitas found when he was a child. It was his personal hideout up until junior high when the band--consisting of Ven, Lea, Demy, and former bandmates, Terra and Aqua--began to form. Vanitas offered his hideout in exchange for putting him in charge and although they were initially apprehensive about this trade, it turned out to be a fairly good deal since the place had everything, including abandoned equipment they managed to repair to near perfection, and extra rooms for storage. After renovating the place, Ven and his friends (mainly Lea) suggested changing the theatre's name to The Organization but Vanitas wanted to keep it nameless, so the name originally intended for the theatre became the band's name.

Good deal. Definitely a good deal.

The best part about The Studio was, even when they became successful, no one knew it existed-- until now that is.  
An outsider has fallen upon their secret place, although he wasn't awake to see the group, he was met with a lot of silent stares when the trio arrived. "So..." Lea was the first to speak when the brothers settled in, "care to explain how this happened?"  
"Sure." Vanitas said, "How'd you like it written out? Skin or tombstone?" Lea put his arms up midway. "Just askin'."  
"I know you said you were bringing something extra and to not make it a big deal," Arlene said. "But I was expecting a puppy or baby dragon, or even a baby chocobo-- not a kid. Who does he belong to anyway?" Vanitas raised his free hand.

"You?!" the group said.  
"Unfortunately."

"My mind has been completely blown." M said. "Vanitas? A father? Impossible to fathom."  
"I'll say." Demy replied. "It's like a unicorn, man: shouldn't exist." He tilted his head to get a better look at the child. "He's kinda cute. You sure he's not a rental?" Lea snorted and gave him a nudge. "A prop to show some humility, right?"  
"I doubt he knows the meaning of said word." Isa replied. Snickers could be heard amongst the group. It immediately grew silent when Vanitas cracked a smirk of his own. "We done?" he asked.

A few of them muttered an unaudible response. Vanitas placed his hand towards his ear. "I didn't catch that."  
"Yeah, we're done..." Lea grumbled, slouching in his seat.  
"That's what I thought." Vanitas handed Sora to Ven, sat down, and looked at Isa. "Stand-ins don't come 'til Saturday."  
Isa pointed to Lea with his thumb. "Had somebody put gas in his car, I wouldn't be here."  
"It's not like I did it on purpose!" Lea was quick to defend himself.  
"Of course," Isa said, "Whatever was I thinking?"

"You have a car, Lea." Vanitas said, "Use it or Isa'll replace you and you'll be a stand-in."  
"You can't do that to me!" Lea protested. "The fans love me!"  
"We're covered in black, stupid." Vanitas said, "They don't even know who you are."  
"I've been sayin' we needed names for the longest! We're individuals!" Lea raised his voice some more, causing Sora to stir. "Oops." he quickly covered his mouth.  
"Put him in one of the quiet rooms, will ya?" Vanitas said.

Ven complied, placed the guitars down, and walked into one of the rooms. He was actually glad Vanitas decided to do all the talking today; he was tired from his latest shift and trying to explain Sora's existence would've led to nothing but a long list questions. Then again, Vanitas said he spoke to them beforehand so that could explain their behavior. He placed Sora on a large round swivel chair and plopped on the bench by the door, sighing at the thought of having to leave the room. _I don't even think I've got the energy for it. That's what I get for doing another back to back... maybe I'll just stay in here._

He found himself chuckling at this; his current attitude was something he spoke against when he was younger. Ah, those were the days of just sitting in an empty classroom talking about careers. Starting a band was an idea that fell out of his mouth one day that became a low-key thing he only thought would last a couple of years or at least until they graduated from high school, but they were still going strong-- maybe it had to do with how mysterious they were (or the fact the theatre's name is the band's). Because of their signature look--which consisted of black hooded coats, gloves and boots--no one knew their names or what they looked like which made it easier to cover the fact Terra and Aqua left.

Not that it was a bad thing; he liked Arlene and M. Sure they contribute in getting on people's nerves and they have their moments (everyone does), but they pulled their weight and that was all that mattered. On top of that, everyone's been trying to figure out M's full name and it's been made into a fun game to pass the time. Still, there were times he missed hanging out with his best friends at The Studio, especially during a time like this where it would've been a bit easier revealing Sora's existence.

The door opened and Isa poked his head in. "You OK?" he asked. "You've been gone for quite some time."  
"Really?" Ven said, checking his watch. A whole thirty minutes had passed and he had no clue. When did he fall asleep? "Oh, jeez..."  
"They played some songs already." Isa said, "I implore you to see the upcoming results." Ven approached the door where he watched Vanitas put his guitar down and faced the crew. "Somebody's been slacking." he said. "I won't say their name. Yet. If you know who you are and you'd like to confess, now's the time to do so." After a moment of silence, Arlene slowly raised her hand. Vanitas scanned the crew again and crossed his arms. "Last chance." he said. Demy then raised his hand, followed by Lea, and lastly M.

"You guys are in so much trouble." Isa whispered. Vanitas took in a deep breath--signaling Ven to shut the door so Sora wouldn't wake up--and after exhaling, he let out one of the most vicious verbal lashing he could give that left the group pale in the face and their once black gear turned white. When he finished, they were slightly huddled together. "Clear?" he said.

"W-we're clear." Demy stammered.  
"Loud and clear." Lea added.  
"Tremendously clear." M said.  
Arlene simply nodded her head.  
Vanitas snapped his fingers and pointed to Ven. "And what were you doing?"  
Ven gulped when all eyes fell on him. "I...uh, took a nap."  
"You took a nap? For a half an hour?"

"I didn't think I'd be gone that long."  
Vanitas scoffed as he leaned on the mic stand. "For real? Half an hour isn't long to you? The fuckin' gall. Newflash asshole: that's thirty minutes of rehearsal time you don't have. And in case you forgot a key factor, I'll gladly refresh your memory: they don't need to be in sync at all times-- we do. You fuck up, I fuck up. You make up for the time you missed, got it? Don't care how you do it, but you better do it."  
"Ooh! Not even Ven is safe from the clutches of Vanitas!" Lea chimed in, clutching his stomach. "This is something made for TV right here!"  
_That actually wasn't so bad._ Ven thought, bobbing his head at Vanitas' demand. There was probably an underlying message he was relaying to him through that scolding: quit that fucking job. It was a message he was once again willing to ignore.

 

Despite the disastrous start, rehearsal was going rather well--until Sora woke up. Since he wasn't doing anything, Isa agreed to watch the little boy and his presence was well received; he introduced Ceviche, played a few games, and asked a lot of questions, some of which Isa couldn't answer, but amused him.  
"I'm curious," Isa said, "Do you like Ven and Vanitas?"  
"Yeah, Uncle Ven's really nice. Vanitas is OK."  
"You call Vanitas by his name?"  
"That's not his name?" Sora tilted his head.  
"It is." Isa said. "I just find it a little odd. Tell me, do you know who Vanitas is?"  
"Not really. He only told me Uncle Ven was my uncle." Sora's eyes lit up and he leaned in and whispered, "Do you know who Vanitas is to me? I promise I won't tell." Isa raised a brow and stared at Sora quietly. This turned out to be more complicated than he initially believed. "Unfortunately, I don't know the answer myself."

Sora sat back and pouted a bit before looking at his stomach. "I'm hungry." he said.  
"Is there something that you want?"  
Sora shrugged then started bouncing. "Oh, oh! I know! I know! Something cheesy and meaty!"  
"I'll see what I can do." Isa proceeded to leave the room and upon opening the door, music slithered into Sora's ears. Although he said nothing and remained in the room, Sora sat back and began tapping his fingers.

"Where're you going?" Lea asked. "You're not leaving me, are ya?"  
"That was the plan." Isa said. "The little one's hungry. I was getting him something."  
"Oh, oh, get me something too." Lea sang before looking at Vanitas. "We get a break, right?"  
"Do you?" Vanitas said.  
"All right! Break time!" the redhead cheered.

Isa returned to the theatre in a timely fashion with food for everyone and he spent his break hanging with Sora and Ven though he barely said a word since he got back. Ven was used to Isa being quiet, but not like this; it's almost as if he was in deep thought of some sort. Was it because he felt a bit left out out today? He would probably feel that way if he suddenly found himself left to babysit a child he barely knew.  
"You don't have to stay in here if you don't want to, Isa." Ven said.  
"I'm fine." Isa replied. "I don't mind being in here. It's actually more quiet in here than the other room."  
"I suppose so..." he said and once again, Isa was silent. It was only during the trip to take the child to the bathroom, did Isa decide to pull Ven aside. He made sure Sora entered the bathroom so that he couldn't hear anything he was about to say. "Why doesn't he know Vanitas is his father?"

"I knew it." Ven sighed. "I don't even know. We thought he knew, but his family lied to him before placing him in our care."  
"How long has he been living with you?"  
"Since yesterday."  
"And I take it very few people on the island know he exists." Ven nodded. "What a predicament you're in."  
"You're telling me." he chuckled. "I'm sure we'll figure it out."

Several minutes had gone by and Sora hadn't made an appearance, which concerned Ven. "He's a lot quicker than this..." he said, as he investigated the bathroom. None of the three stalls were occupied and Sora wasn't at the sinks or hand dryers either. "What the hell?"  
"What's wrong?"  
"Sora's not here. Where'd he--"  
A series of crashes came from the rehearsal room. They rushed into the room where they found Sora alone onstage staring down at the fallen equipment. _That didn't just happen._ Ven thought, _Please tell me that didn't just happen!_ He ran to the stage to make sure Sora wasn't hurt. He was relieved to see no injuries but was a little upset. "Sora, what did you do?" he mumbled.

"Shouldn't you be asking when and how?" Isa said. He was doing his best to hide the fact he was impressed that the child managed to slip by without being noticed.  
"I didn't mean to." Sora said, "They fell."  
"It'll be okay." Ven said, "You're not hurt, that's all that--"  
"What happened?!" Lea and Demy said, running to the disaster.  
"How did it happen?" M asked.  
"Is anything damaged?" Lea asked, looking through the mess. "Please say no."

Everything appeared to be fine, until they found a beautifully designed silver and black guitar at the bottom of pile damaged. The strings were off and the neck and body had been severely cracked. "Uh oh." Demy said.  
Vanitas was already there picking up his broken guitar and staring at it quietly; in a matter of minutes, Sora damaged pieces that took years to find, collect, and put together. He even managed to crack that rare, marvelous design that cost him a fortune and actually put him in this situation. "It was an accident." Vanitas heard Ven say. "Most of it. I'm sure it can be fixed." He took in a deep breath and remained silent; he placed his guitar down, pulled out his phone and typed something. Everyone's phones vibrated and they looked at the message they received. "Rehearsals are pushed back?" Isa said.  
"Uh-huh." Vanitas replied. As fast as he responded, he picked up Ven's guitar and, like a sledgehammer, brought it down on the equipment. They watched, wide-eyed and mouth agaped, as he smashed the surprisingly durable guitar into everything. When he finished with the equipment, he repeatedly slammed the guitar into the ground.

"I think he reached his limit." Arlene said.  
"It's too painful to watch." Demy covered his eyes.  
"We should flee while we have the chance." M said, backing away.  
"No way, Flower Boy," Lea grabbed him. "You ain't gettin' me killed."

Ten more slams to the floor later, the room was engolf with silence. Only Vanitas' footsteps were heard as he approached Ven and Sora on the stage and dropped what remained of the guitar. "We're done for the day." he said and walked out of The Studio, leaving everyone practically bewildered. When it was certain the coast was clear, Sora broke the silence by whispering in Ven's ears, "He needs to work on his people skills."


	4. The Expert

Vanitas' guitar wouldn't have been broken had they found a babysitter. Correction: none of what happened yesterday would've occurred had the residents of the island known about Sora's existence prior to his arrival. They definitely needed to address this situation, but Vanitas suddenly went quiet upon returning home the other day and it followed into this afternoon. It concerned Ven a little bit, but now wasn't the time to focus on that, at least not yet. "We can't keep him hidden." Ven said, "He's not some dirty little secret that should be kept inside."  
"He's in the backyard." Vanitas replied.  
"You know what I mean! Barely anybody knows about Sora's existence. Even my best friends don't know of his existence and they live across the street! Their wedding's coming up soon, y'know?"

Vanitas shrugged.

"You don't care about any of this, do you?" Ven said. Another shrug. "Okay, I got what the first one meant, what's that one mean?" A third shrug. Ven threw his arms up. "Forget it. No! No! Don't forget it! This is serious, dude. We did this whole shit backwards. We gotta fix it and make sure his adjustment here goes smoothly." Ven paced around the kitchen island as Vanitas' eyes followed. "What we need is an expert." he continued. "Somebody who knows about parenting, healthcare, education, all of that. Somebody who's good at keeping secrets and can hide things in plain sight. But who's capable of doing that?"

Vanitas rolled his eyes as he pulled out his phone and dialed a number.  
"Who're you calling?" Ven said.  
"An expert."

***

"Vanitas? A father?" their mother said, as she slowly took her seat. She received a "Yeah." and "Yes." from her sons, though one was weak. She was used to her sons calling her for aid, but this... this completely took her by surprise. "Wh-when did this happen? How old is the child?"  
"He just turned four."  
"Four? That means... Vanitas! You--?"  
"No."  
"Then how did it happen?"  
"It just happened."  
"Sex doesn't just happen."

"It does when you're in the moment." the brothers snickered.  
"Don't laugh." their mother said, "Seriously, Vanitas, how did this happen? I need to know." Vanitas said nothing, so she turned to Ven. "Do you know? You're his keeper."  
"Well... uh... y'see, I don't--"  
"It was the guitar, wasn't it? The one he talked about getting for years?"  
"There were only fifty in existence..." Vanitas murmured.  
"One." she said. "You told me one."  
"Fifty in that shape, one with the body design I wanted. And it's not like I _did_ it anyway. Somebody needed help and I helped for a fee."

"You don't even realize how stupid that sounds, do you?" she said, in a tone far too calm for Ven's comfort. "Vanitas, you lied about your age for a guitar. A  _piece_ of a guitar that's probably not even in the same condition as you bought it. You could've came to me. I would've bought it for you had you asked." She sat back in her chair and sighed. "Nothing can be done about it now. Would anyone like to give me the details?"  
Despite that calm yet, murderous-like tone she had, Ven was a little relieved she was taking this situation well; he expected something more, but she must've been satisfied with what she said and patiently waited for one of them to fill her in. He resorted to telling a half-truth and left out the parts where Sora's parents were dead (and he didn't know)... and the fact he impersonated Vanitas to gain custody... and a few other things... just in case.

"It sounds like you two're doing things fine so far," she said when he finished, "I honestly don't see why you need me here."   
"You're an expert." Ven said. "You know kids."  
"No, I know y'all. And you still manage to surprise me."  
"But you know a lot more about this parenting stuff than we do." As she bobbed her head in agreement, the woman couldn't help but notice that the only one talking was Ven. Vanitas hadn't uttered a word-- no snarky comments, no mutters, nothing. He just sat there, staring into an abyss, in complete and utter silence while Ven spoke. Although she appreciated the fact Ven was doing what he felt he needed to as an uncle living under the same roof, he wasn't the one she wanted to hear from. 

"Care to give some input, Vanitas? This is _your_ son we're talking about after all."  
Vanitas' lips remained shut and before Ven could voice his concern about this, the kitchen door opened and little footsteps echoed on the floor. "I take it that's him." their mother said. Sora came into the living room, covered in dirt with his stuffed pal and carrying a bucket containing shiny rocks. "Look what I found!" He proudly displayed his treasure to the trio, earning him a couple looks of praise. "Can I keep 'em?"

"Sure." Ven said.  
Vanitas shrugged.  
Sora took notice of the woman and walked closer to the young men. He reached for Vanitas' sleeve and tugged. "Who's she?"  
"That's our mom." Ven said.  
"Oh." Sora placed his treasure in the bucket and approached the woman. "Hi! I'm Sora!"  
"That's a handsome name."  
"Thank you. Are we related too?"  
"Mmhmm."

"I know that's Uncle Ven." he said, then pointed to Vanitas, "But I don't know him. He didn't tell me. Is he my uncle too?"  
"I'd like to think he's much more than that." the woman said, though it wasn't fully directed towards anyone.  
"Can I ask you something?" the little boy said.  
"Of course." Sora climbed onto the armrest and whispered into her ear. "That sounds like a good idea." she said.  
"What?" Ven said.  
"How'd you two feel about having a pet?"

"A pet?" Ven said.  
"It won't be mine." Sora quickly said, "Mommy and Daddy said I can't have one. If I show them I'm good with yours, then I can have one."  
"That's slick..." Vanitas murmured.  
"We'll think about it."  
"Yay!" Sora exclaimed.  
"You're tracking dirt all over. Clean up, will ya?"  
"Okay!" Sora hopped down from the armrest and rushed up the stairs.  
"Need any help?" Ven said.  
"I got it!" the little boy called back and shut--more like slammed--the bathroom door.

Their mother chuckled at this. "You used to do the same thing." she said, "Always wanted to be an independent little one, even when you were born. That hasn't changed, has it?"  
"Nope," Ven said, nudging Vanitas. "Still the stubborn wannabe lone wolf he was born to be."  
"He looks exactly like you." she added. Ven threw his arms out as if to say, 'That's what I said!' only to receive a sharp elbow to his side.  
"It's true!" he hissed at the young man, who returned to his quiet state. Only it was much quieter than last and it was clear he had something troubling on his mind. 

"If it's about your father, I won't tell." his mother's voice broke through and she now had his undivided attention. "I can keep this a secret between us for the time being since he's away on business. Fair?"  
He only responded by shaking his head, but said nothing.    
She motioned for Ven to switch places with her and he did so. Once she was beside Vanitas, she placed her hand on his. "Hey, I know being a parent can be a scary thing, especially when it happens out of the blue like this. But you can't lock yourself away with all that negative thinking going on in that brain of yours. It's not fair on you and it's certainly not fair on Sora, who from the entire vibe I'm getting, needs you now more than ever. You're not alone in this. You've got Ven and me, and I'm sure a lot of other people out there, believe it or not, that're willing to help. In the meantime, continue doing your best to love and make 'im feel at home, okay?"

".... yeah." 

The woman smiled and gave him a hug and quick kiss on the forehead, much to his chagrin. She stood up and did the same with Ven before she took her leave. Ven watched from the window as she got in her car and waved a final goodbye to her as she drove off. The living room was quiet again, save for the water running from the upstairs bathroom, and Sora's loud, "Uh oh." He chuckled and headed up the stairs to see what happened. Between the running water, the creaking of the stairs and the TV that was turned on, he heard Vanitas huff, "Man, I hate it when she knows."


	5. Bentley

"No deal." Vanitas said, nearly fifteen minutes after putting Sora to bed. The little boy's battery ran extremely low after an entire day of causing mayhem and it didn't help that Ven was taking their mother's suggestion to heart.  
"Why?"  
"They're expensive. They're dirty, they wreak havoc. They're just like him--" he nudged his head at Sora's door as he said this, "--only they don't speak like we do. No deal."  
"We'll get 'im something small," Ven said. "Like a fish or turtle. Something a four year old can handle."

"We're not watching the same program here. You do realize we're gonna be the ones taking care of it, not him. He doesn't have to pay for bills and food and housing-- we do."  
"That's one of the costs of parenting."  
"Doesn't have to be." Vanitas muttered. "How come whenever I say no, you undermine me and do it anyway?"  
"Last time you said no, Sora was at risk of going to the State."

Cue dramatic gasp.

"How _dare_ you throw my past at me like that."  
Ven chuckled and tousled Vanitas' hair. "Trust me on this, okay? It won't be bad."  
The next day, Sora was in the backseat of Ven's car, kicking his feet and dancing to music.  
"Where're we going?" he finally asked.  
"Remember that talk we had about getting a pet?" Ven said.  
"Yes."  
"We're gettin' one."  
"Really?!" Sora bounced in his seat. "I can really get a dog? Or a bird?"  
"Anything you want."  
"Yay!"

 The two arrived to the pet shop and as they were heading in, a young woman with a basket full of flowers was coming out. "See you in a few weeks, Daisy." she said.  
"Bye, Aerith!" Upon seeing Ven, her eyes lit up some more as did her smile. "Ven! Hey!" she said, giving him a hug. "I didn't think I'd see you today."  
"Hey, Aerith," he said. "See you making your daily rounds."

"You bet. Daisy just placed another order for one of the pet displays. Big forest or something, we'll figure it out. How about you?"  
"Not doing much. Just here to get a pet. Not for me." He pointed to Sora who gave the woman a small wave. "And who's this?" she said.  
"I'm Sora!" the little boy said. "This my uncle."  
"Pardon?"

"Heeey," Ven cut in, "Sora why don't you go in ahead of me, okay?"  
"Okay!" Sora ran further into the shop.  
"Be careful and don't knock anything over." he called to him.  
"Uncle?" Aerith reiterated. "You mean--?" her mouth dropped and she pointed in Sora's direction.  
"Yeah." Ven scratched the back of his head. "Took me by surprise too."

"How did that happen?"  
"It's really complicated to explain..."  
"He looks just like him."  
"That's what I said."  
"I didn't think he knew how to do it. I'm impressed. He didn't seem to be the fathering type... tell him I say congrats, okay?"

The two said their goodbyes and Ven went to greet Daisy. She had noticed Sora pass the counter and, as she stopped him briefly to give him some instructions before he began to explore, she too couldn't help but notice the strong resemblance the little boy had to a certain someone she knew. Sora made his way down the hall and looked through each display in wonderment; there were so many animals here, many that he's never seen before. Where he lived, most of these animals wouldn't even be considered house pets. They all had signs describing what they were, what they did, and when they would be going to their new homes. Nearly all of them were taken, even the fish.

What's a pet shop if there're no pets to take home?

As he pondered this, he came across a room that had an egg on display. It was an unordinary egg, far bigger than the ones he's ever seen and colorful too; it changed colors with each step Sora made towards it. "Wow..." he said as he pressed himself against the display case. He looked around to see if the egg had been claimed by anyone. No sign of purchase whatsoever could be found on it and he couldn't contain the excitement boiling within.

Meanwhile, in the front of the store, Ven got Daisy up to speed with Sora's living situation. Daisy was one of those older women that practically knew everyone on the island, so it was refreshing to her to see a brand new face... even if that face looked so much similar to a grump she and everyone else knew all too well. "We'll definitely do our best to make him fit in." Daisy said. She noticed from the corner of her eye Sora returning from the back with a picture in hand.

"I want this." the little boy said, running around the counter to show it to her.  
"I see you found my most recent shipment." Daisy said.  
"What is it?" Ven said, leaning over to get a look.  
"A Magic Egg."  
"Magic Egg?!" Sora said.  
"Yes. If there's _any_ animal in the world that you'd want as a pet, you make a wish into the egg, and in a week or two, the egg will hatch and you'll have your own pet."

"Can I have it, Uncle Ven?" the little boy begged. "Please?"  
"Sure," Ven said, "How much?"  
"Well..." Daisy said, "It'll be a little pricey since we don't know what he'll want as a pet. Come back in two weeks and I'll give you the full bill. Sounds fair?"

"Definitely."

Ven and Sora left the shop with the large egg and returned home to the most perplexed and pissed face one could ever see. Vanitas expected something small. Small. Not something bigger than Sora's head and then some. "Lookit what I got Vanitas!" Sora said, "It's a Magic Egg!" Vanitas stared at the egg for a moment then looked at Ven, who managed to crack a smile and nervous chuckle.

"He said please."

For the next week, Sora rolled the egg around the house and set it up in various places so his soon-to-be pet would be comfortable when it hatched. It was surprisingly durable given the number of times it bounced down the stairs, had things fall on it, and at one point hit the ground when Sora thought it was a good idea to get the egg downstairs faster by throwing it over the railing. "You sure the thing's not dead?" Vanitas said, watching Sora do his egg routine.  
"It should hatch in a couple days." Ven replied. "That's what Daisy said."

"That's if he wished for anything. I think he's just rolling that damn thing around for the hell of it." Just as he said this, Sora came rolling the egg by them. "Hold it, Billy Hatcher." the dark-haired said. "What's in there?"  
"It's a secret!" Sora said.  
Vanitas scoffed. "What's in it?"  
"Not telling." the little boy sang.  
"I'll give you five bucks."

"Vanitas--"  
"Shut up. Five bucks and I'll let you roll that thing around the whole damn house."  
"Even your room?"  
"Once."  
"And you won't touch it?"  
"Don't push it."  
"Okay!" Sora motioned for Vanitas to kneel down and whispered in his ear. Vanitas rolled his eyes, but nonetheless, he pulled out his wallet and paid the child who went on his way rolling the egg around the house.

"I could've used that shit for something else..." he muttered.  
"What he say?"  
"He wasted a wish on a stupid dog. You could've bought that!"  
"Would you've wanted a dog?"  
"Hell no!"

"That's what he's gonna get. Deal with it."  
"A dog named Bentley... what a stupid name. And where're you going?"  
"Work, errands, my life outside the house."  
"You really gonna leave me here with this thing?!"  
"Don't wait up."

***

It was late when he heard his bedroom door creak open and a rolling sound filled his ears. He kept his eyes shut and listened to Sora perch his egg near the window, mess with the blinds, and run out of the room as fast as he could. Upon hearing the door click, Vanitas sat up and glared at the egg gleaming in the moonlight. "This is fuckin' bullshit." He got out of bed and approached the color changing oval, which stopped at a red color when he stood in front of it.

He gave it a slight kick and frowned. No way in hell this thing is stayin' in here. He could push it in Ven's room, but from the way Ven's room was angled, the moon wouldn't shine in it that well. He kicked it again and went back to bed. A few hours later, he was up again looking at that damn egg, now shining a light blue color and looking... a little bigger.

Was it getting bigger?  
No... but it was.  
It definitely got bigger.  
It had to go.

"Did you move Bentley?" Sora asked when he came to retrieve his beloved item the next morning.  
"Ever heard of knockin', kid?"  
"Did you move 'im?"  
"Yeah."  
Sora pouted. "You said you wouldn't."

"I'm pretty sure I said, 'Don't push it'. If it makes you feel better, I didn't use my hands."  
"Where'd you put 'im?"  
"Garage."  
"I'm telling Uncle Ven on you."  
"I don't care."

Sora kept his poutface as he ventured downstairs towards the garage. He found his egg in the corner and it appeared to have gotten bigger and cracked. He got closer and the egg cracked some more. "Oh! Oh!" Sora ran all the way upstairs, pushed Vanitas' door opened, and jumped onto his bed. "Vanitas! Vanitas! Come see! Come see!"  
"No." Vanitas said and covered his body with layers of blankets.  
"C'mon!" Sora pulled the blankets off the young man and shook him some more. "Get up! Get up! Come see!"

Vanitas groaned and allowed himself to be led to the garage. "Look, look, look." Sora pointed to the egg. "It's hatching!" Vanitas crossed his arms and watched the thing rock back and forth, changing colors, and cracking some more. Then it stopped. A whole minute passed since the egg's big show and it remained cracked and colorless. Another minute passed and still nothing happened.

"Well, that was a hoot." Vanitas broke the silence in the room.  
"I told you not to move it." Sora said, giving him a push. "You messed it up, Vanitas."  
"It ain't my fault this shit's a dud, kid."  
"It is."  
"Not."  
"Yeah it is! I'm telling Uncle Ven!"  
"I don't care."

As the two went back and forth, the egg began to crack again and the cracking sound got loud enough to interrupt their argument. "Look! It's hatching! It's hatching!" Sora bounced.  
"Great..." Vanitas said, arms crossed. The top of the egg popped opened and a large paw came out. The more the egg hatched the more the animal came into view until it finally freed itself and greeted the two--both whom's mouths were opened (one in glee and the other in momentary shock)-- with a low growl.

"Bentley!" Sora exclaimed.

 

Ven returned home after taking a break from his household chaos. He entered the house and found that was relatively quiet, so while he was hoping for the best, he mentally prepared himself for the worst. So far, the walk from the foyer to the livingroom was smooth. He ventured further into the house and once he was certain the coast was clear, he started settling in. Just as he tossed his jacket over the couch, he felt arms wrap around his waist tightly, and his body lift from the ground. The room flipped with him as he slammed to the ground and the air left his body. "Oow..." he coughed out.

"Thought you were in the clear, didn't ya?" Vanitas said, rising to his feet.  
"What did I do this time?" Ven groaned.  
"You bought Sora that stupid egg."  
"If you had a problem with it, why didn't you go to the store and get something?" Ven proped himself up on his elbows, debating whether he should stay on the floor or get up. Not even home five minutes and he gets suplexed and blamed for something his brother could've done himself.

"I didn't want 'im having a pet in the first place." came Vanitas' response as he yanked Ven up from the floor.  
"You didn't break it, did you?"  
"No, that shit's durable. You saw what Sora did to it."  
"Did it hatch?"  
"Yeah."  
"So? Where's the dog?" Vanitas scoffed, but nonetheless he provided an answer. "Backyard."

Ven dusted himself off and walked into the backyard with Vanitas where he saw Sora laying on the grass. "Uncle Ven!" he said as he got up and ran over to him to hug him. "Bentley hatched! Did Vanitas tell you?"  
"He did. Where is he?"  
"He went to get the ball in the big grass." Sora pointed to the grass stalk near the fence. "I wanted to get 'im but Vanitas said no." Ven picked up the little boy and looked at the stalk then Vanitas. "Erm... that's not ordinary grass. Dude, you were supposed to mow that down last week."

Vanitas shrugged, but before he could receive a well-deserved verbal lashing, a ball came rolling out of the stalk over to the trio and the grass shuffled as Bentley revealed himself, much to Ven's horror and Vanitas' amusement. "Ven," he said, "Say hello to Bentley."  
Bentley was indeed a dog, but not the kind Ven thought Sora would ever imagine.  
There was another name that Bentley was known for: Cerberus. Sora wished for a three-headed hellhound and here it was, in their backyard, hovering above them and waiting to play. Vanitas had no problem beaming a grin at Ven when the two went back inside, assuring Sora that they wouldn't be far.

"A hellhound?!" Ven said, when he shut the door. "What the hell're we gonna do with a hellhound?!" He brushed his hair back as he paced around in a small circle. "Are we even capable of raising something that big?" He stopped his pacing and looked at Vanitas, who's grin never wavered. "You could say something, y'know."  
"Who me?" Vanitas said, placing a hand to his chest. "You must've forgot I was against this from the very beginning. But _no_ , Sora just _had_ to have a pet, right?"  
"You're not helping."  
"I'm helping myself to this glorious moment where _I_ was right."

Ven huffed and watched his nephew from the window. The little boy ran around with the dog and showered the large three-headed creature with all the love a child could give. "Technically speaking, he is a dog." he heard Vanitas add. "Ain't half bad either. Would probably make a good guard dog."  
"I guess so..." Ven muttered, dialing a number on his phone. "Hey, Daisy, the egg hatched... what's your price for a three-headed dog?"

***

It took a few days (and quite a few bills) to get Bentley settled into their home; along with their property being spacious, Bentley had a lot of items made for him to suit all of his needs so he managed to fit in just fine in the short amout of time he's been walking on this island. But there was something about Bentley's situation that a certain individual couldn't help compare it to. "He's just like Sora." he said, watching Ven get ready for work. More like walk back and forth in front of the TV.  
"What do you mean?"  
"Hardly anyone knows they exist."

Ven's morning routine came to a pause when it dawned on him that this was true. "Huh." he said, leaning against the wall. "Quistis may not like the sound of that."  
"Who?"  
"Quistis. Sora's social worker. She plans on coming over today."  
Vanitas clicked his teeth. "Man, why'd you call her?"  
"I didn't. I ran into her the other day and she told me she wanted to see how Sora was doing."  
"You couldn't tell her he was fine?"  
"She wouldn't be doing her job if she solely relied on words now would she?"

Vanitas scoffed and muttered, "You do this shit on purpose."  
Ven shook his head as he proceeded out the door. "Try to be nice, okay?"  
"Whatever."

A few hours later, Quistis' car pulled up to the house, much to Sora's delight and Vanitas' chagrin. As she stepped out of the car, she couldn't help but notice the two putting together a rather large doghouse. She's never seen it before, but the sign "Beware of Dog!" caught her attention. "Look, Vanitas, it's the nice lady!" Sora said, pointing to her.  
"I see her." Vanitas replied tossing some of the equipment to the ground and crossing his arms as Sora went to embrace her.

"Hello, Sora," she said, hugging him back. "How are you?"  
"Good!" he said, "We're making a doghouse for Bentley! I told him it was small though."  
"Who's Bentley?"  
"My dog! Uncle Ven and Vanitas got 'im for me! Wanna see?"  
"I'd be happy to in a moment, but I need to speak with Vanitas first."

"Me?" Vanitas said, "You see he's fine. Ain't that enough?"  
Quistis frowned and shook her head no, earning her a huff. "Fine." he said, "Sora, go play. We'll finish the house later."  
"Okay!"

Once she saw Sora vanish behind the house, Quistis turned to Vanitas. "Aren't you going to invite me in?"  
"Nope."  
"You were a lot nicer when we first met. Why the sudden change?"  
"What do you want?"  
"I wanted to see how Sora was doing."  
"You saw 'im. He's fine."  
"How do I know this? He could be lying to me. You certainly did."  
Vanitas arched a brow. "What're you getting at?" Quistis gave him a look that needed absolutely no words-- he's been made.

He motioned his head over to the house and the two walked inside. Quistis observed the living space around her as she took a seat across from Vanitas; aside from the remnants of Sora's presence, it was a relatively clean space. Vanitas didn't look too bad himself, but he had a really shitty attitude. "How'd you know?" he asked.  
"I had a gut feeling from the beginning." she said. "Ven sorta helped me confirm it. I don't think it was his intention though."

"But you trusted me anyway? That wasn't smart..."  
"The fact remains you're his father and I can't deny you your rights over a gut feeling... but I'm concerned nonetheless. You didn't have to lie."  
"I didn't."  
"Ven didn't have to lie."

Vanitas shrugged. "But he did and now Sora's here and he's been doin' fine."  
"Why didn't you call?"  
"Why didn't you tell 'im his parents were dead?"  
"What?"  
"He thinks they're on vacation. His got sent here with barely any clothes and these sealed envelopes."

"... they didn't tell me this."  
"Great, so we're all in the dark."  
"You didn't tell Sora?"  
"No."  
"Well this is one hell of a dilemma we're having. By any chance, did you see what were in the envelopes?"

"One of 'em had a bunch of drawings he did and coloring book. Nothing special."  
Quistis merely bobbed her head as she began pacing around the couch. "This is very strange..." she said, "Why wouldn't they tell him? And send him with practically nothing?"  
"May've not felt the same way 'bout him like his parents did." Vanitas replied.  
"As much as I don't want to believe that," Quistis said, "I can't disregard the evidence I'm being faced with."

"Doesn't matter anymore," Vanitas said with a shrug. "Sora's here not there."  
"But you didn't make the call. Ven did."  
"Why the hell does it matter? The kid's being fed, being clothed, he's enrolled to attend school when the summer ends, he's up to date with medical records and, the most important part of all, he's happy."  
"How do I know that it's because of you?" Quistis watched as Vanitas rose to his feet and walked into the kitchen. "How do I know Ven's not the one putting in all the work? He speaks more passionately about that child than you do. Did you even tell him you're his father?"

"Fucking hell, lady," Vanitas turned to face her as he clicked his teeth and crossed his arms. "What more d'ya want from me? You're busting my balls over here about a damn phone call."  
"It's not about the phone call, Vanitas!" she said, "It's about you taking the initiative to be a parent and the fact you didn't call makes me believe -- Oh my god!"

Vanitas looked out the window and managed to see Bentley throw Sora into the air. Quistis bolted into yard and pointed. "What is that thing?!"  
"That's Bentley." the young man said matter-of-factly.  
" _That's_ Bentley?! It just threw Sora in the air and--"  
"He does it all the time. Look, he's coming back down."

"Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!" Sora landed on Bentley and slid down the hellhound's back onto the grass and laughed. "Again! Again! Do it again!" he said, hopping up and down before noticing the two adults and leaping into Quistis' arms. "Say hi to Bentley."  
"Uh... hi, Bentley." she said to the three-headed dog and received a slight head tilt. Quistis chuckled nervously before looking at Sora.

"Sora, sweetie, where'd you get Bentley?"  
"I wished for him!" Sora exclaimed.  
"Wished?"  
"Yeah! There was this lady selling a magic egg and she said if I could have any pet in the world I can wish it in the egg." he then whispered into her ear. "Vanitas didn't think it'd work."

"I don't see why he'd think that." she said.  
"He wish he could have Bentley! Bentley's the best dog anyone could ever have!"  
"I see..." she replied, placing the little boy unto the ground. "Thank you for introducing Bentley to me. I actually have to go now. I'll make sure to see you real soon to check up on you, okay? Remember you can call me at any time."  
"Okay!" Sora said and ran back to play with his pet.

Quistis sighed and walked back into the house. "Why does he have that thing?" she asked as soon as the door shut behind her.  
"You're acting like you've never seen a hellhound before."  
"Not as a child's pet! It's not safe!"  
"He's been here quite some time and Sora hasn't been harmed yet."  
"There's no guarantee, Vanitas. He could get hurt."  
"I'm not getting rid of him. Sora needs him as a distraction. Look, are we done here, yet? You said you were leaving."

"You have a really bad attitude, Vanitas."  
"I get that a lot."  
"Nonetheless, Sora appears to be doing well so--"  
"You'll be leaving and'll make plans to check on Sora soon cuz you don't trust me, yeah, yeah, I heard it outside. I'm not fuckin' deaf."  
"But I didn't say that part..."  
"Didn't need to. Leave."

Quistis sighed once more and left. As the door was slammed behind her, she walked to her car and turned back to the house to see Sora in the front on top of Bentley's head and waving. "Bye, Nice Lady! Come play with us next time you come!" She watched the two vanish behind the house again as she got inside of her car and sat there quietly, feeling a bit silly. Maybe she overstepped her boundaries by questioning Vanitas' parenting. Maybe he was shy or sick or something she didn't know about and had Ven impersonate him because of it. There's a plethora of reasons for why he had Ven impersonate him and here she was, a complete stranger who knew nothing about him, who had the unmitigated gall to question him out of the assumption that he didn't want to be a parent. Maybe, just maybe, under that shitty personality of his, he was a great dad who loved his child and didn't want people in his business.

How badly she wanted to believe that was the case ... if only her gut wasn't telling her something completely different.


	6. I Now Pronounce Your Wedding Screwed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The full chapter will (hopefully) be posted soon.  
> Until then, please enjoy this tiny excerpt that I meant to post some time ago.
> 
> UPDATE: And it's getting there. It's slowly getting there.   
> Sorry this is taking so long to complete.

Terra eyed the large doghouse outside the twins' house. Despite living across the street, he and Aqua had been extremely busy with work and their upcoming wedding to take notice of what was going on across from them. "Since when did they get a dog?" he said, approaching the door with Aqua.  
"Not sure..." she replied. "Maybe they got it recently."  
"A dog that big? No way."  
"Anything's possible on this island."  
"I bet Vanitas made it."

"What gave it away?" Terra pointed to the grafitti and other artwork surrounding the doghouse one of the words mixed with a child's handwriting said, "TeRrasUCKs". Aqua laughed as she knocked on the door and rang the doorbell.  
"Probably bribed a kid with candy or something to help him out." Terra added.  
"That doesn't sound like something he'd do. Vanitas doesn't like--" The door opened and their jaws dropped; standing on the other side was Ven with Sora on his back. "Hey, guys," the young man said.

***

"I'll be damned," Terra said, as he and Aqua took their seats in the living room. "Somebody actually liked him enough to have a baby with him."  
"Why didn't you tell us sooner?" Aqua asked. "Last time I checked, we are best friends and we live across the street."  
"I know... I know..." Ven said, "I didn't know how to go about telling everyone without people freaking out or anything. Y'know Vanitas isn't the most likable person on this island."

"I'll say." Terra muttered. It was no secret that Terra and Vanitas didn't get along with each other; had it not been for the fact Vanitas was Ven's brother, he would have never agreed to have given the walking mood killer a wedding invitation. "So how'd he get the kid anyway?"  
"Yeah..." Ven said, "About that... to make a long story short, Sora's parents were killed in an accident, Vanitas was determined to be his father and now he's living with us."

"Vanitas didn't want him, did he?" Aqua said.  
"I didn't say that..."  
"Didn't need to."  
"When you word it like that, it makes him sound heartless. Everything was sudden, y'know? He needed some time to adjust... still does, but he's trying. Sora's always fed and clothed and Vanitas is the one taking care of all of it. I just made the phone call."  
"That doesn't change the fact he wasn't willing to take the initiative to be a parent." Terra said, then added under his breath, "Damn, I swear that kid can be such an asshole." Ven frowned at this; Terra wasn't lying about Vanitas, but he didn't like hearing about it from other people, even his best friends. As far as he was concerned, his brother was trying despite his neverending complaints. "Well, it doesn't matter now," Aqua said, "We didn't come here to bash Vanitas, anyway. We can make room for Sora; he'll fit in just fine. Though I'm sure people will be in for quite a shock."

 

The wedding day came pretty quickly afterwards; by that time, Sora had an outfit that he wasn't squirming out of and Ceviche had an outfit of his own that the twins' mother made from scratch. "Why can't Bentley come?" the little boy asked.  
"Bentley's too big for the venue." Ven replied. "It's better to have him stay here and guard the house. Have you seen Vanitas?" Sora pointed to the young man as he trudged down the stairs in his suit and yawned. One of the most important days of the year and he was taking a nap? An _hour_ before the wedding? "Seriously, Vanitas?" Ven said.

"What?"  
"Whaddya mean what? You were sleeping."  
"So what?"  
"C'mon, dude, you said you wouldn't be a jerk today."  
"I'm not." he yawned once more. "Better to sleep here than there." Ven only shook his head and picked up Sora. "You ready to go or what?"

Inside the car, Vanitas was still grumbling about having to attend the wedding. "I dunno why they invited me anyway. They don't even like me."  
" _Terra_ doesn't like you." Ven corrected, "Aqua thinks you're fine... to a certain degree."  
Vanitas scoffed. "I call bullshit."  
"Not everybody hates your guts, dude."  
"Wouldn't care if they did."

"I like Vanitas!" Sora chimed in from the back.  
"Can't say the same about you..." Vanitas' response was low but audible enough for Ven to hear. The blonde shook his head at this as he pulled into the venue. "Try and behave yourself, will ya?"  
"Yes, dear." Vanitas hopped out of the car along with Sora.

Man, this was gonna be a long reception.

Back at home, Bentley had just woken up from one of his many naps to an empty household. He didn't hear any of the brothers or Sora leave but he was aware that they were going somewhere he couldn't attend. He was left enough food and water until the household came back and his large toybox was there to keep him occupied as well, but, to be frank, he was a little bored. He's been living on the island for some time and never saw much of it himself, if at all. All he could see were a few houses beyond the large fence and the grass stalk he tends to run in while playing fetch with Sora, which was another realm on its own that he has yet to explore.

He walked over to his toybox and rummaged through it. There were a lot of chew toys and balls but no one to share them with. That's when he noticed a new toy that he hadn't seen before; it was round like his other toys but metallic and small. He tapped it a few times but it didn't do anything, then he licked it and needless to say, it didn't taste good. When he tried to chew it, it didn't feel good on his teeth and the bad taste returned and he spat it out.

Okay... so what did it do?

It was too small for him and too nasty (not to mention hard) to chew on, so why was it in there? He huffed as he swatted it away from his space and went back over to his napping spot. Soon Sora and the brothers would be back home and he'd have someone to play with. Until then, it was probably time to take another --

_"Oooh! I can see the house from here!"_

Bentley's ears and heads went up at the sound of Sora's voice. It was definitely Sora he heard, but Sora was nowhere in sight. He heard Sora giggle but again, there was no sign of the little boy. _"Is that Bentley?"_ the little boy said. Bentley looked over to where he heard the child speak some more and the small metallic ball lighting up and moving around. He approached it and took a look at it once more. _"Bentley!"_ Sora's voice boomed from the ball. _"_ Hi _Bentley!"_ The hellhound responded with a bark and tail wag. He was beginning to like this thing. _"_ Sorry _we had to leave_ you _home. Ven says you were too big. He said I could use his phone to see you. I think it's a new toy and he says it does cool things._ Like _fetch!"_

 _"Sora what're you doing with that?"_  
_"You said I could play with Bentley."_  
_"Not with that part! It's still in development!"_ Bentley tilted his head at this. What's in development? And exactly where were they saying this from? _"You said I could play fetch with it."_  
_"Not here, Sora!"_  
_"Told ya not to give it to_ 'im _."_  
_"Shut it! You have to be home for that part to work. You can try it out later, okay?"_  
_"Okay. Bye, Bentley!"_ The light on the ball went off and it went completely silent; Bentley blinked a few times, exchanges looks with his counterparts, then sat down staring at the ball.

... was that it?

If so, it woke him up, but he would like for it to do more. If not, what was next? Just as this thought crossed his mind, the ball came to life and proceeded to bounce near the grass stalk. Bentley went after it and stopped it before it bounced all the way into that unknown realm he's yet to explore. The ball stopped moving again, but this time Bentley kept his eyes on it and once again, it started to move. It bounced up and down and around the hellhound gaining more height with each bounce until it went over the fence and down the street. 

Finally, a new toy to play with and it's gone off on its own adventure.  
Bentley didn't know how to process this event nor did he know whether or not he could follow it. No one said he could leave the house to get the ball.  
But no one said he couldn't.

And it was his after all... so... he should retrieve it.

Right?

 


End file.
